Fly Girl

Author: Ann Hood
Genre: Memoir
Publisher: Norton, W. W. & Company Inc., 2022
Pages: 288
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: In 1978, in the tailwind of the golden age of air travel, flight attendants were the epitome of glamor and sophistication. Fresh out of a college and hungry to experience the world - and maybe, one day, write about it - Ann Hood joined their ranks. After a grueling job search, Hood survived TWA's rigorous Breech Training Academy and learned to evacuate seven kinds of aircraft, deliver a baby, mix proper cocktails, administer oxygen, and stay calm no matter what the situation.

In the air, Hood found both the adventure she'd dreamt of and the unexpected realities of life on the job. She carved chateaubriand in the first-class cabin and dined in front of the pyramids in Cairo, fended off passengers' advances and found romance on layovers in London and Lisbon, and walked more than a million miles in high heels. She flew through the start of deregulation, an oil crisis, massive furloughs, and a labor strike.

As the airline industry changed around her, Hood began to write - even drafting snatches of her first novel from the jump-seat. She reveals how the job empowered her, despite its roots in sexist standards.

Review: Fly Girl is a contender for my favorite book of the year. Written by a former flight attendant, I related so well to this book.

When I was little, and sometimes even now, I look up a plane and wonder where it came from and where it's going (although the Flight Radar app answers those burning questions). Even before I took my very first flight as a senior in high school I thought that being a flight attendant would be glamorous and exciting. I would still love to travel the world, and I still like to fly.

Well-written, entertaining, informative, and fun. In a way I feel like this book was written just for me. Loved it.